Ray Tracing Performance Index 2026 Benchmarks 33 GPUs Across 15 Games
A new set of GPU performance results is now available for players who want to use ray tracing without turning their PC into a slideshow. The latest Raytracing Performance Index 2026 benchmarks test graphics cards across 15 ray-traced games, focusing on maximum ray tracing complexity while keeping other performance features disabled, so buyers can more clearly judge what to expect from each card at different resolutions.
To make the numbers usable in real purchase decisions, the index can be viewed not only as a single overall ranking, but also split into separate performance views for Full HD, WQHD, Ultrawide-QHD, and Ultra HD. The updated database now covers 33 graphics cards priced from roughly 200 to 4,000 euros, with additional coverage available in a 2025 benchmark archive if a specific model is missing.
How the Raytracing benchmarks work
The benchmark suite runs 15 ray tracing titles and unifies testing conditions by disabling frame generation, variable rate shading, and low-latency options. In some cases, upscaling is used to reflect what happens in actual gameplay when ray tracing gets heavy. The games are tested with an internal render resolution of 67%—a setting described as roughly equivalent to most “Quality” modes—meaning that while image quality won’t match identically across vendors, the results aim to match practical gaming behavior more closely.
For each graphics card, the charts report both average frames per second and the P1 percentile. The P1 figure is meant to better represent frame distribution, which often correlates more closely with the “felt” smoothness than a simple average.
What the results say about buying for ray tracing
The headline takeaway is that ray tracing performance is still strongly associated with Nvidia’s lineup. The report notes that Nvidia has invested in the feature since the late summer of 2018, and that this long runway has translated into a generational advantage versus AMD in its ray tracing-focused testing.
Intel’s Arc lineup is described as taking a similar approach, and the benchmark discussion specifically calls out that cards such as the Arc A770 and Arc B580 can show occasional performance hiccups in more traditional rasterized settings, while ray tracing performance is comparatively strong.
Resolution scaling is treated as the most important practical factor. Because ray tracing workload is tied to the number of pixels, the results emphasize that ray tracing generally scales heavily with resolution—and that any upscaling method can help disproportionately when ray tracing causes performance drops.
That leads to a simple screen-based recommendation. For Full HD (1080p), the report suggests that budget options can be enough for “passable” results, citing the GeForce RTX 3060 12GB and Arc B570 as examples. For WQHD/1440p, it recommends stepping up to stronger models, while also pointing out that target frame rates might be reached by using a higher-performance upscaling mode—for example switching from “Balanced” to “Performance”—instead of relying on the same quality preset at higher resolutions.
At the highest end, the benchmark guidance becomes more demanding: Ultra HD (4K) requires substantial graphics power, and the report recommends at least models in the GeForce RTX 5070 class or Radeon RX 9070 class to avoid unplayable results.
Finally, the report argues that ray tracing without upscaling is usually not a good experience. Temporal upscaling approaches—FSR, DLSS, and XeSS—are described as an essential pillar for smooth performance, especially when dealing with complex ray traced effects. It also notes that many games expose ray tracing quality controls beyond resolution and upscaling: raising ray tracing quality to “Ultra” can cost performance, while dropping to “High” often delivers a noticeable FPS boost with minimal visual change. Going lower than that tends to introduce more obvious softness or “muddiness” in the final image.
With 33 cards tested across four resolutions and 15 ray traced games under consistent rules, this update is aimed at helping PC players choose hardware that can actually sustain ray tracing settings they care about—whether that means buying a stronger GPU for higher resolution, or using the right upscaling and quality targets to keep frame rates stable.
